Halfback
First-year Varsity: No. 1 in Kickoff and Punt Returns, No. 2 in Scoring
Named to All-Opponent Team by Loyola University, 1950
Fleet-footed and Aggressive, Top-notch Offensive Player
USF Career Years: 1950-1951
Birthdate: July 2, 1930
Hometown: San Francisco
High School: Mission High School
Joe “Scooter” Scudero was born on July 2, 1930 in San Francisco and attended Mission High School, where he earned All-City honors while playing halfback. Listed at 155 lbs., he told Sports Illustrated that he had a reputation for fighting, averaging “two fights a day in high school,” sometimes with teachers.
At 5’ 10” and 173 lbs., Scudero was one of the shorter members on the Dons team, but was known for his speed and was one of their best receivers. In 1949 his freshman year, he scored six touchdowns in five games. His sophomore year he recorded nine touchdowns on the varsity roster, while gaining 361 yards in 89 carries and caught 5 passes for 142 yards. Scudero played scatback, safety and returned kicks for USF, while leading the team in punt and kick-off returns. In a sophomore game against Loyola, he returned a 62-yard punt for a touchdown.
The Stanford coach Dink Templeton commented on Scudero in a 1951 preseason Call Bulletin article: “Frankly, I got more thrill out of the slashing (and) running of little sophomore Joe Scudero than any other back all season.” In his junior year, Scudero caught five passes against San Jose State, and a 50-yard punt return for a touchdown in a win against Idaho.
He was fast, quick thinking and a scrappy competitor, but he also played in the shadow of Ollie Matson. In a postseason SFCall Bulletin article, Head Coach Kuharich said: “Scudero, at a great personal sacrifice, let Matson do most of the ball carrying. Joe is a great runner himself and willingly and unselfishly gave way to Ollie.”
Under Head Coach Joe Kuharich, the Dons went undefeated at 9-0 during the 1951 season. With two African-American players on the team in Toler and Matson, they were not invited to any postseason bowl games. The owner of the Gator Bowl Sam Wolfson, had made an agreement with the Orange and Sugar Bowls to omit teams with black players. When the Orange Bowl extended an invitation to them on the condition that the two African-American players be excluded, the team unanimously declined; and from then on they were called the “undefeated, untied, and uninvited.” Although the Dons had been denied a bowl berth, the entire team was recognized at the 2008 Fiesta Bowl at long last making an appearance in a bowl game. Sports Illustrated quotes Scudero of the team fraternity: “we’d break our necks for each other.”
Unfortunately, without postseason funding, USF was forced to shut down its football program the following year. Attendance at the Kezar Stadium games had declined 80% since the arrival of the 49ers in 1946. The squad featured nine future NFL players, including Pro Football Hall of Fame members Matson, Marchetti, and St. Clair, and five earned Pro Bowl selections at some point in their career. The team’s Sports Information Director, Pete Rozelle, served as NFL Commissioner for 29 years.
When USF discontinued the football program, Scudero enrolled at the University of South Carolina, but was unable to play football due to eligibility rules. He decided to withdraw and return to USF where he earned his degree. Joe had formed a bond with Father Raymond Feeley, S.J., and became a serious student of Philosophy and Theology. When Fr. LoSchiavo gave him a C in a Philosophy course, Scudero told him: “I am not a C student. But I know you’re young and you’re learning, and I’m sure you won’t make that mistake again” (Sports Illustrated). Following graduation in 1953, he joined the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League, where he earned All-League honors. The following year he played for the Washington Redskins from 1954 to 1959, and then the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1960. He played halfback, as well as safety, and had 10 interceptions, 68 punt returns, 44 kickoff returns, and gained 1,738 yards in his NFL career.
He retired from football when he suffered a serious hamstring injury and, became an actor. Scudero was a veteran of the USF College Players, and appeared in several TV and stage productions, notably on Gunsmoke and Dragnet, before entering public service to serve as Special Assistant to Housing and Urban Development Secretary Jack Kemp. He maintained a lifelong interest in Philosophy and Theology, and attended many religious retreats.
